Nocturnal Rendezvous
by SeaweedBrain's Permanent
Summary: Set after Blood Of Olympus. Filled with heart-to-heart talks and sweet kisses. Fluffy. Percabeth.


**A/N:Okay, so this is a fluffy piece with no serious plot. It's set just after the Second Giant War, when the camp's being repaired. Hope you enjoy it! :)**  
**"Disclaimer: I'm Rick Riordan. *cough,cough* yeah, right.**

* * *

I creep stealthily towards Cabin 6, praying to the gods that none of those terrible harpies see me. After everything that I've been put through, getting gobbled up by a flock of hungry chicken ladies is a rather undignified way of dying. Besides, Annabeth will never forgive me if I get killed on my way for a nocturnal visit.I couldn't sleep. Too many nightmares. I'm used to them as nightmares are basically in the job description of a demigod, which are usually visions and are super vivid. But ever since Tartarus, the nightmares have been, um, freakishly nightmarish. Everything in there is designed to kill, to torture. I couldn't have done any of it without Annabeth. Though it's been way more difficult for her, what with facing that foul, Spidey-faced monster Arachne, she has never once stopped being there for me. Annabeth is awesome like that.

"Which brings me to the present situation. I make my way slowly around Cabin 6, towards the round window, which is thankfully open. I try not to look at that creepy carved owl with its stupid onyx eyes glinting menacingly at me. Glancing over my shoulder at the magnificent Athena Parthenos, I mutter a quick prayer to Athena, "Please don't zap me into demigod barbecue."

"I peer through the window. A mess of golden curls is crushed against the pillow in front of the window. But something isn't right. She's twitching and turning… another nightmare. "No! Not him, please…not Percy." I want to reach out and hold her close to me. "Psst. Wise Girl, it's me!" I whisper, half-afraid that her siblings would wake up. Apparently, I don't have to worry about them 'cause they're sleeping like logs. "Percy…" she moans again. "Annabeth. I'm here. It's okay. We're okay." She looks up suddenly. Her cheeks are wet. Those gray eyes that I love so much have a haunted look in them. It breaks my heart to see her like this. "Percy?" She whispers. Her voice is weak, with a desperate edge to it. "I'm here. We are together."

One of her siblings grunts, stirring. Wow. Nice timing. I point to the peg where her Yankees cap hangs, then beckon her. She understands.

A moment later, a pair of invisible arms tackle me. I put my arms around her. "D'you know it's weird hugging an invisible person? You could be a phantom, for all I know." She snorts and pulls off her cap, settling her head in the crook of my neck. I drop a kiss on her curls. "I'm not going anywhere."

"As if I'd let you go." She mutters. I chuckle." As much as I would love to stay like this, if we don't move from here, we're gonna become harpy snack." She pulls away and studies my face.  
"What did you have in mind?"  
"C'mon. There's something I want to show you."  
I take her hand and lead her towards the beach. As we cross the canoe lake, I can see the naiads pointing at us and giggling from beneath the water surface. Stupid water nymphs.

_*Oooohh look! The son of Poseidon and the daughter of Athena are out for a walk.*_  
_*Oh how romantic! Thank the gods we don't have to watch Apollo's stupid reality show on Hephaestus TV to entertain ourselves again.*_  
_*Yeah you're soooo right gurl. The gods have become so booooring.*_  
***CLOUDS RUMBLE***

Is it weird I can hear their conversation? Yeah, probably. _SCRAM!_ I say forcefully in my head. The naiads topple over each other, giggling again. At least they leave. Being a son of Poseidon can be exasperating sometimes.  
Annabeth is looking at me curiously. "Where are we going, Percy?"  
"You'll see." I give her what I hope is a smoldering look. She rolls her eyes. Guess the smolder didn't work. Bummer.  
It's been more than two weeks since the war with Dirt Face Gaea got over. Everyone at camp has been busy with repairing all the cabins and the Big House. Grover has been busier than ever, what with replanting all the plants that had been uprooted and tending to the injured naiads, and Baby Chuck has become the instant heart-throb of the camp. I wouldn't be surprised if the girls started asking for his hoof print next. With so much going on, I and Annabeth have hardly had any opportunity to spend some quality time together. I glance at her. Her golden hair is glinting in the moonlight, and despite her rumpled appearance, she looks more beautiful than ever. Almost like a goddess. And her eyes, the way they sparkle…um, sorry. I got distracted.  
"Do I have something on my face?"  
"Huh…?"  
"You were staring at me."  
"Can't I even stare at my beautiful girlfriend?" I pout. She blushes. "You're so cheesy Seaweed Brain."  
"It makes you blush." I smirk. She glares at me.  
"Come on, now." We are at the beach. I pull her towards the shore.  
"We're going under?" she frowns as we're almost waist deep in water.  
"Yep."  
"This set up's reminding me of our…you know" she smirks at me as I create a bubble around us.  
"Wanna recreate the best underwater kiss ever?"  
"Is that why you brought me here in the dead of night?" she cocks an eyebrow, her eyes sparkling.  
"Um, no. I – I had something else planned." I duck my head. This is the first time in days that we've had a chance to talk properly. Only us. Although our relationship is not particularly new, I'm afraid that I'll do something stupid and ruin it. And then Annabeth will kill me. And feed my body to Cerberus.  
It's just that fighting with her with her, planning and strategizing comes naturally. We've been doing that for years. And thanks to the Great Goddess of Stupid Cows, we'd been separated for six months just after a couple of months into our relationship, and even after she found me, the war with the great smelly giants kept us occupied. Not to mention our sunshine and roses filled trip to Tartarus and back. So yeah, not a very conducive situation for romance.  
"Seaweed Brain?" Annabeth laces her fingers with mine.  
"Huh…? Um, oh yeah, come on." She looks quizzically at me, but doesn't say anything. After Tartarus, I'd been a wreck of so many emotions – anger, fear, sorrow; but mostly anger, and I sometimes felt that Annabeth resented me for it. I'd scared her when I'd almost suffocated Akhlys with her own assortment of poisons. I grip her hand tighter. We'd almost reached. I pull her towards the slightly obscured maw of the cave.  
"I feel Annabeth's breath hike as she took in the view before her. "Wow, Percy."  
"I discovered it when I was wandering around."  
"It's beautiful."

I guide her towards a slightly secluded area where I'd spread out a blanket. We sit down, making ourselves comfortable. Annabeth nestles against my side. "It feels nice to have some time alone."  
"Mm. I missed you."  
"You've been seeing me everyday for the past two weeks, Seaweed Brain." She rolls her eyes.  
"But we never get a chance to talk properly. Something always pops up. Rebuilding…or baby Chuck. I mean, it's not like I don't want to help, bu-"  
"I know what you mean, Percy." She slips her hand into mine.  
"I still can't believe we defeated Gaea. There's this part of me that fears we'll be dragged into another crazy almost-apocalypse, or some other stupid Godly affair. Is it too much to ask for some peace?"  
"It won't be Camp Half-Blood if it's peaceful."  
"Still. It would be nice to kick back and let the next gen demigods take over."  
"Wishful thinking, Percy." She chuckles softly.  
"I can't wait to start college in New Rome. Just you and me. No monsters, no distractions." I drop a kiss on her curls, pulling her closer to me.  
"Try not to get yourself killed before that, will you?" She glares at me playfully.  
"Aye, aye, captain." I salute her.

She unfolds herself from my side and takes my face between her hands, lightly stroking my cheeks with her thumbs. I tilt my head and press my lips against hers, snaking my arms around to hold her closer. She kisses me back fervently, threading her fingers into my hair. I slide my hand up her back, tangling it in her sweet, lemon-scented hair, and it's better than nectar and ambrosia. It's pure bliss.  
We pull apart, pressing our foreheads together. I press my lips on hers again chastely. "Happy Anniversary, Wise Girl."  
Her eyes fly open. "Is it-"  
I chuckle. "You forgot, didn't you? I'm never gonna let you live this down."  
She slaps my chest and glares at me. "You dragged me out here in the dead of night, what with my mind scattered and everything and-"  
"Nuh uh. You forgot. I'm hurt. Oh yes, very hurt." I place my palm on my chest woundedly.  
She huffs and looks away. I laugh and pull her close to me, kissing her thoroughly. "Come on Wise Girl, it's not like I can get dirt on you everyday. Let me live my moment." I poke her in the side.  
She places her head on my chest. "Okay, I'm sorry I forgot. Happy birthday, Percy. And happy anniversary."

I pull away from her gently and stand up. She looks at me quizzically. I quickly walk over to the other corner of the cave and pick up the sleek box that I'd hidden before. Settling myself down beside her again, I hold out the box to her.  
"You didn't have-"  
"What kind of boyfriend doesn't get his girlfriend a gift on their first anniversary?" I shush her, rubbing my hand on the back of my hand. "And it's really not a gift." I add hastily.  
She raises her eyebrows at me and pulls the lid off. Her eyes widen and she gasps. "How…?"

"Well, I know how important the laptop was to you, and you told me it one of Dedalus' protoypes with blueprints that would take you forever to decipher… and well, you lost it in…there, and I just got the idea maybe it might be intact because it's you know, built by Dedalus and um, so I asked Hermes to pull some strings and he happened to have some contacts…there. Gods know how…" I ramble. "And, um, your mom might've helped me fix it up a bit, and Tyson too." I add hastily. She is still looking at me with a weird expression.

"Um, are you mad at me…?" Holy Poseidon, did I do something wrong?

She shakes her head vehemently. "Gods, no. Oh Percy-" she stops and her eyes widen again. "You went to my Mom?"  
I duck my head. "Um, yeah. She wasn't very pleased but she helped, and she warned me…" I mumble. I'm sure I resemble one of Apollo's red cows now.

Without any warning, Annabeth scrambles on my lap and smashes her lips against me before I can even think clearly. I just barely grab her and steady us before we topple over. Our kisses are frenzied, almost desperate, and before I know it, I'm lying on my back with Annabeth pressing on me. Her hands are on my chest beneath my shirt and I've got my hands half tangled in the sleeves of her shirt, skating over her warm shoulders and- um, sorry. Too much information.

We break apart, our breaths coming in pants. She laughs nervously. I try to chuckle but all I get out is a zombie like groan. "I love you." she mumbles against my lips. My heart's doing one of those jumping jack things against my rib cage. I pull her tightly into me. "I love you too, Wise Girl."  
She buries her face in my chest. "You have no idea Percy, how…how I… got through a day at a time when you were gone. I counted the hours and minutes, and when we found Jason and realized his memories had been wiped, and how yours must have been wiped too, I…I – you have no idea-"

"I never forgot you Wise Girl. I woke up with all my memories wiped, with only your name in my mind. I was so scared I'd forget you and your face, that it would fade away too. And then I saw demigods raising families, and I thought we could have that too. That's the only thing that kept me going." I stroke her hair slowly.  
Annabeth tries to pull away, but I pull her closer to me "And I'm sorry for frightening you…in Akhlys' death mist. I'm sorry for losing control. I know you are still angry at me for that. I'm sorry. I didn't realize-"  
"It's okay, Percy. I know."  
After that, we slip into a comfortable silence, enjoying each other's warmth, occasionally talking about my mom, Tyson and Ella, and our friends.  
"Hey, why did Nico say I'm not his type? I mean, what's not to like, right?" I nudge her, smirking. She laughs, her eyes sparkling. "Shut up, Seaweed Brain."  
And before I know it, we drift off to sleep, tangled together, lulled by the soft laps of water around the cave.

* * *

_*Hey boss, whered'ya disappear again?! Where's miss Annabeth, boss? Camp's goin' crazy! Boss!*_

I jump out of my skin and look around. Why's Blackjack talking in my head?  
"Gods of Olympus…." I look at Annabeth, still sleeping and of course looking utterly beautiful. I almost feel guilty for shaking her awake. Almost. She snaps up, disoriented and hazy eyed, taking in our surroundings. "Oh my gods, Percy. Captain Hedge! And Chiron!" she buries her face in her hands.

I laugh. She glares at me with her rat's nest hair and I can't help but laugh again. She looks so cute. Love, dear children, is a wondrous thing. "You have to admit Wise Girl, it's a little funny."  
She scowls at me "I swear to the Gods, Percy, any funny words to anyone, and I'll gut you like your underwater siblings."

"Okay! No threats needed." I peck her cheek and pull her up with me.

And now, we need to face the music. Wish us luck!

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